Colin Calderwood and Hibs in daunting survival scrap

WHERE do Hibernian go from here? In very literal terms, Colin Calderwood's men head for Fir Park, Motherwell, on Saturday and to a venue where this horrible domestic season began in earnest in August.

• Colin Calderwood cut a haunted figure on the Somerset Park touchline on Tuesday

The win achieved then - regarded by many as having been against the run of play - has helped make the situation not quite as dire as it could be, but no-one who has watched Hibs play in recent weeks can claim the side are embroiled in anything other than a serious relegation battle.

The Scottish Cup is a side-issue - as, too, we now know, was the brief European adventure which anticipated the struggles to come. But Tuesday night's defeat to Ayr is still a significant pointer to just how poor this team Hibs team have become in only 12 months. They failed to breach Ayr defence once in 180 minutes and Calderwood seemed at a loss to explain why afterwards.

The manager has inherited a failing group of players, that much is clear. But he has managed to make precious little impression on results since his arrival. In his last ten matches, Hughes saw his side win only once - at Motherwell - in a run of matches which included seven defeats. Calderwood's nine losses in 14 outings is hardly an improvement. In fact, the men with the best record in charge are Alistair Stevenson and Gareth Evans, whose one match at the helm produced a rare victory, over Kilmarnock.

• Rod Petrie promises money to strengthen Hibs squad

Calderwood mentioned the team being in the "depths of despair" on Tuesday night, as he spoke with reporters in the tunnel at Somerset Park. From over one shoulder came the shouts and songs of delight from the home dressing room. Calderwood probably did not wish to know but these players had just achieved a significant feat. Ayr's victory was their first ever against a side from two divisions above them. Ayr's old stadium had been expected by many to double as a graveyard of hope for the visitors. Calderwood attempted to ward off the threat of an embarrassing exit with another set of wholesale changes. It was nothing if not a test of character for a side suffering from confidence issues, and Calderwood's team selection had recognised the mettle required. He made no fewer than seven changes to the team so well beaten by Celtic on Saturday. Only skipper Ian Murray, Francis Dickoh, Paul Hanlon and Derek Riordan retained their places. Brought in were the likes of Liam Miller, Michael Hart and Colin Nish - players who were meant to be familiar with nights such as on Tuesday, when the need to match the endeavour of fired-up opponents is foremost.Notably, every member of the Hibs side took to the field wearing short-sleeved shirts on a wretched night in Ayrshire. The message they had seemed to want to give was that they were up for the fight. But it was a false impression. From the initial stages of the first half, Hibs distinguished themselves only in their ability to stand off their Second Division opponents.

The midfield must have been a particular disappointment to Calderwood. This department was completely re-jigged from Saturday, he had decided to place faith in Miller, John Rankin and Kevin McBride. But it's difficult to expect body-on-the-line performances from those whose futures are so uncertain. All three will leave Hibs at the end of this season. Indeed, of the 11 who started on Tuesday, only three are contracted to the club beyond the summer.

Calderwood has had to rely on players he neither knows particularly well nor now has reason to rate. Deals to bring in others have foundered due to injury but Calderwood has talked of bringing only "one or two" during the present transfer window. Whether Rod Petrie can be persuaded to "splash the cash" or not in the next ten days, the targets still must want to come and play for the club - and be fit enough to do so. The responsibility for steering Hibs away from relegation rests with the current squad, from which Calderwood has selected 18 different starters in their past three matches. He has still to come up with a team showing anything like the level of commitment and talent required to keep Hibs above Hamilton Accies, who can always be relied upon to scratch their way to results. Billy Reid has a group of players who want to be with him and are committed to keeping the club in the SPL. St Mirren, too, are on a high after scoring six away from home, against a team - Peterhead - who are from the same division as Ayr United. Hibs' problems ripple throughout the team, from the forward line to the last line of defence. The last striker to score for Hibs was Derek Riordan, on Boxing Day. That the goalkeeping situation is causing concern is not a novel situation at Easter Road but Mark Brown's absence on Tuesday was assumed to have been due to injury. Calderwood had, in fact, decided to drop the 'keeper and replace with Graeme Smith. The stand-in looked uncomfortable behind a re-jigged centre-half pairing. Paul Hanlon was moved out to the full-back position having been perhaps the only success against Celtic, when he played in the middle.

If some of Calderwood's decisions appear to be questionable, it is simply the price a club has to pay for ushering in a new manager three months into the season. Calderwood is making running repairs with the material he has been left by a previous incumbent. It seems well short of the time when he should have to put up with talk of his position being under threat. But, when even he concedes the players at his disposal have little else to give, the future looks bleak indeed.